I didn't ask for this
by miss.SunFlower
Summary: 'He was seriously that far gone...' This will probably become a series of one shots - set during the course of the movie. Enjoy


Disclaimer; I do not own Tangled. Inversely, I'm rather certain Tangled owns me at this point.

A different kind of rivalry.

Flynn hadn't asked to be caught, or to wind up being a naïve blonde girl's birthday baby-sitter. He'd definitely not asked for her to be infuriatingly impossible to hate if not actually likeable.

And least of all had he asked for the sheltered girl with obscenely long hair to save his life. Not once, not twice, but four times. Five if he counted climbing her tower to get away from that idiotic horse as one.

Dammit all! He'd taken on the persona of that mythical character because he had dreamt to be the hero – the dashing, obviously rich, hero people talked about for years to come. Sure, he'd probably gotten some of that, he figured, he was certainly notorious now. He should have been the one in Goldie's place in the scene the morning of her birthday.

Yet, there she was again, shielding him from the same stupid animal that had driven him to meet her to begin with. How in the Kingdom's name it had managed to survive everything, Flynn would never know. He just wanted it gone for good – and somewhere in the back of his mind hoped Rapunzel wouldn't get herself hurt trying to deal with it all.

He mulled over the sudden protectiveness that had sprung from nothing just then. She certainly knew how to handle herself, after all. It was just sheer stubbornness and a deflated ego on his part. Nothing more. And this is why he tried not to think much. He shut off the mental conversation and paid attention to the one going on before him.

"Woah, easy now, easy." Blondie's voice was slow, calming and… working. He couldn't see her face but the damned horse appeared unable to look away. Flynn had a flashback to that hypnotizing glow in her emerald eyes the previous night, and for a moment pitied the animal. He'd, thankfully been able to shake himself out of the uncharacteristic staring contest and -outwardly- pretend it hadn't occurred.

"Now sit. SIT." The horse sat. Flynn watched in mild awe while he checked off one more point for Rapunzel and a whopping zip for him.

Her mild scolding tone changed to adoration, just like that. "Ooh, that's good." She cooed, "You're bein' so good." She stroked his mane and Flynn swore it made the horse version of a purr. He stared. "Are you all tired from chasing that bad man all over the place?"

"Excuse me?" He shot at her. But she didn't even twitch to show she'd heard him. Unbelievable. The thing that tried to KILL him TWICE was now getting all her attention.

"No one appreciates you, do they?" She embraced the sitting creature like he was her hero. And oh, did that horse look… smug. Smug? What the heck could he be smug about? What, that he was getting held by a stunning girl who was showing HIM more affection than Flynn had ever received in hi-

AGAIN with the thinking too much. So he spoke again, "Oh, c'mon! He's a bad horse!"

That at least got Blondie's attention. She turned to face him, green eyes oh so bright and a wide smile on her lips, "Oh Eugene! He's nothing but a big sweetheart!" She turned back to her beloved new pet, "Isn't that right… Maximus?"

Annnd he got a name now, too. Flynn barely contained a groan, half at her silliness and half at himself, and the way most of his irritation with her disappeared at the use of the name he was supposed to have dropped. Though at first embarrassed at his defeat in admitting the name he admitted to NO ONE, Flynn found he truly didn't despise it as much as he had when giving it up. And all it had taken was a few words from the naïve and blunt Rapunzel.

"I like Eugene Fitzherbert MUCH more than Flynn Rider."

She liked Eugene. Him. No one had ever used the words like and him – in either persona – in the same sentence. No, in the same paragraph. In the same conversation. It just wasn't something connected. She liked him as Eugene more than him as Flynn.

And right now appeared to like a horse called Maximus more than both.

Oh GOD, Flynn Rider Eugene Fitzherbert whoever he was, was getting JEALOUS of a HORSE. A. HORSE. He was really that far gone for the green eyed girl with magic hair? Had that long held gaze over a campfire glow really affected him like the now all but domesticated Maximus?

And was it really possible that he didn't mind that?

"You've got to be kidding me." He said, leaving it up to everyone whether he was talking to himself or Rapunzel.

She all but ignored him yet again, pulling him to his feet and explaining to the horse why she needed him to see her precious lights. Really, she was explaining. To. The. Horse. In some ways, Flynn supposed he should be thankful that she'd saved him but she was laying it on thick at this point. Really thick. He liked it better when he had been fearing for his life, personally.

But he obediently followed her into the kingdom with the stupid horse beside him –his rival for Blondie's attention now. Her affection.

Flynn Rider had certainly not asked for a dumb animal as a rival, nor for him to be in want of the charmingly oblivious young woman's feelings while he himself couldn't quite admit his -insane- fondness for her.

He hadn't asked for any of this. But one more delighted smile from Rapunzel and he decided he'd take it anyways.


End file.
